Police: Holy Cross Student Said Colorado Shooter Was Hero

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WORCESTER (CBS) – A 21-year-old college student was ordered back to jail Monday on a $100,000 cash bond. “If the defendant does make that bail, I’m requesting he be placed on house arrest,” said Assistant District Attorney Marc Dupuis. Gregory Hamalian, who attended College of The Holy Cross, is accused of threatening to shoot up a movie theater and take out FBI agents. The threats were allegedly posted online.

“The Bellingham Police Department received a threat from a party who lived in that town. There was a post on Facebook that at the midnight movie premiere of “The Hobbit” there would be a mass shooting,” Dupuis said while reading information gathered by State Police investigators. The posts did not list a specific theater, but say the plan started after the killings at the premiere of “The Dark Knight.” “Specifically the post said I’ve been planning this event ever since my hero James Homes, your honor, Mr. Holmes is the individual who shot up the theater in Aurora, Colorado,” Dupuis read.

There were also claims of weapons, although Hamalian’s attorney said he did not have any when he was arrested. “In my arsenal I have two automatic weapons, two 45’s and a couple of smoke grenades,” he allegedly wrote. Most of what was found was posted on an online bulletin board. Investigators got an IP address, traced it to College of the Holy Cross and then to Hamalian’s dorm room, according to the Assistant District Attorney. “He did, in essence, make admissions that he was the sole person responsible,” Dupuis told the judge.

Hamalian’s father posted his $10,000 bail Friday night after his arrest, but neither he nor his wife wanted to comment after their son was ordered back into custody and his bail increased. The attorney who represented him would not comment either.

College of The Holy Cross issued a statement, saying Hamalian is on interim suspension and can’t return to campus until the case is over and after a review by the college. He is listed on the college’s website as a member of the men’s track and field team.